Apple shares surge to record high as the iPhone sees profits up 47 per cent

Apple shares surged to an all-time high last night after the technology giant delivered sales and profit figures well ahead of Wall Street forecasts.

The California-based company earned U.S.$1.7billion (£1 billion) in the three months to September 26, an increase of 47 per cent after sales jumped 25 per cent to U.S$9.9billion (£6.1 billion).

Apple has weathered the economic storm better than many other computer companies, giving it an edge when PC sales started to grow in the quarter.

Switched on: The popularity of Apple's iPhone sent shares soaring to all-time highs

It sold 3.1 million Macs, a 19 per cent rise from the same period a year ago after it updated its operating system and refreshed its MacBook Pro line.

With the company unveiling a faster iPhone in June and cutting the price of the previous generation of the product, iPhone sales rose to 7.4 million devices, half a million more than in the same period of 2008.

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Meanwhile, sales of Apple's regular iPod music player have suffered as a result of the popularity of the iPhone, which has iPod features built in. The company sold 10.2 million iPods in the quarter, 8 per cent fewer than last year.

Shares in the company rose more than 6 per cent in after-hours trading, even though the company was more cautious about the current quarter than analysts had been expecting.

Broadpoint AmTech analyst Brian Marshall said the latest figures reinforced his view that 'Apple is hands down the best technology company on the planet'.

Investors are anticipating more growth for the iPhone as the company is due to start to selling the product in China on October 30.